Singapore invokes fake news law against Lee Hsien Yang over Facebook post on political scandals
- Prime Minister Lee’s brother, Lee Hsien Yang, says trust in the ruling party ‘has been shattered’ over various sagas involving PAP ministers in recent weeks
- The correction notice issued refutes a number of Lee Hsien Yang’s comments, such as the felling of trees on state-owned properties rented by two ministers
“Trust in the PAP has been shattered,” his post said. “Trust has to be earned. It cannot simply be inherited. PM Lee Hsien Loong’s failure of leadership has squandered that trust.”
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Lee Hsien Yang’s post also noted corruption cases overseas linked to the offshore and marine arm of state-linked Keppel Corp and the erstwhile Sembcorp Marine, and a saga involving the inflation of circulation data by the publisher of the national newspaper, The Straits Times.
The correction notice issued on Tuesday noted that Lee Hsien Yang had incorrectly stated that the state paid for renovations on the properties leased by Shanmugam and Balakrishnan, when in fact the upgrading works were in keeping with usual practice.
The order also refuted Lee Hsien Yang’s claim that trees on the properties were felled specifically because of the ministers’ leases, saying that the felling was ordered by independent arborists. These assertions, first floated online, were the subject of an investigation by the Corrupt Practices Investigation Bureau and a separate probe by Prime Minister Lee’s top lieutenant, Teo Chee Hean.
Both investigations found that Balakrishnan and Shanmugam had not abused their power or engaged in actions that were in conflict of interest by leasing the bungalows.
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The correction order served on Lee Hsien Yang also said his remarks about The Straits Times publisher – currently named SPH Media Trust – were inaccurate. Lee had said the circulation scandal involved “SPH Media”.
The saga in fact took place during the time when The Straits Times and the country’s other major newspapers were published by Singapore Press Holdings Limited, a company listed on the Singapore Exchange. The media business was hived off from the company in 2021 to become present-day SPH Media Trust, a not-for-profit entity currently backed by state funding.
Lee Hsien Yang, who has some 88,000 Facebook followers, is required to publish a correction notice stating that his post contains misleading statements. He complied with the order later on Tuesday, and in a subsequent post said the directive was “misleading”.
“Read my actual post and compare what was said to what the notice claims I said,” he wrote.
Others who have been served correction notices under Pofma since July 16 include local political commentator Andrew Loh, the independent news magazine Jom, and opposition politician Kenneth Jeyaretnam.
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Lee Hsien Yang and Lee Wei Ling have said their father wanted the home demolished, but the government says the property has significant historical value and a decision on its fate is one for a future administration to make.
Prime Minister Lee has refuted his younger siblings’ claim that he hoped to keep the bungalow intact as a means for the PAP to continue benefiting from the reverence with which most Singaporeans view Lee Kuan Yew.
In March, Shanmugam said Lee Hsien Yang and his wife Lee Suet Fern had “essentially absconded” from the city state amid a police probe for perjury.
